As technology develops competing brands aim to provide professionals and DIY enthusiasts alike with top performing products at reasonable prices. Now normally most of you who follow our blog know that we are emphatic about the Dewalt power tool technology, however we have decided that we're so impressed with the Bosch GSB182LI cordless combination hammer drill that we simply had to tell you why....
In fact we loved it so much we even made a video. Take a look at our inhouse review on the GSB182LI drill. (I think some of the staff were jealous we got to pre-test).
Lightest Cordless Compact Drill / Driver in its class
This particular point is pretty self explanatory; however when it boils down to the design and manufacture of a power tool one of the hardest features to achieve is improving size and weight ratio without affecting power. In this case Bosch have certainly outdone themselves with the 0615990H28 18V Li-ion professional light series drill. First off, the drill / driver is in fact the lightest and most compact drill in it's class of Bosch products with an overall weight of 1.4Kg and a total length of 187mm. For any of you sceptics out there, thinking that it's not possible without a compromise on performance, believe me there isn't. We've tested the drill in a range of applications and it makes short work of anything wood, metal or masonry. It's what we like to call a jack of all trades.
Powerful Optimised Motor
The most profound way of measuring a drill / drivers performance is by measuring the performance of it's motor. The GSB 18-2-LI has been designed with professionals in mind but does of course suit avid DIY enthusiasts too. The cordless drill integrates a powerful 18 Volt electric motor producing a whopping 1,400 rpm and delivering 19,5000 impacts per minute. As mentioned earlier we've called it a jack of all trades where it offers a large drilling diameter of 30mm, 10mm, 10mm respectively in wood, steel and masonry applications. It took us approximately 2 seconds if not less to make our way through a 30mm piece of wood.
A Newly Developed 2 Speed Planetary Gearbox
This is a term that most motoring enthusiasts / inventors or professional power tool developers will be familiar with. For those of you reading this that are not familiar with what exactly a planetary gearbox is and are thinking about purchasing a tool or any item with this gearbox style well explain it in simpler terms: "Known as either a Epicyclic or planetary gear system the gearbox consists of a central (stationary Sun Gear element) gear. From that center point two or more planetary gears are affixed via mountable rocker arms and is finished with a complete surrounding outer ring gear; technically known as an annulus. This meshes with the planet gears creating a tight fit.
This probably still means nothing to you but in terms of benefits to the GSB 18-2-LI drill it means alot. Primary benefits include a higher power density in comparison to parallel axis gear boxes (and more compact) which provides a reduction in volume, kinematic combinations and enhanced torque. In lay mans terms it means that the loss of energy per stage (this is a 2 stage box) is 3% meaning that 97% of the power generated is going to your working application. The drill itself has standard a standard rocker switch offering 2 modes of speed.
Check out this video:
Keyless Chuck
Now most power tools are moving towards the keyless chuck design, it's simply more efficient for users when it comes to switching bits, especially if you are making regular changes you don't want the hassle of having to use a keyed chuck. In this instance the Bosch 0615990H28 drill has wowed us with its fantastic design. During our test of the drill we we're able to change bits in less than 5 seconds with its neat auto locking chuck; making life a little bit easier.
Powerful Yet Compact Batteries
THIS IS without a doubt one of the SMALLEST if not the smallest Li-Ion power tool battery on the market. Bosch supply you with 2 x 18 Volt 2.0Ah battery as standard with the GSB-18-2-LI kit. It measures an astounding 113 X 75 X 40 mm and barely fits the palm of even the smallest hands. It's lightweight weighing less than half a kilo and packs a huge 18 Volt punch via its 2.0Ah current ensuring long lasting performance per single charge. In addition to that they now incorporate the Bosch Electric Cell Protection (ECP) which protects the batteries against overloading, overheating and deep discharge.
Front Mounted LED Worklight
I think it's fair to say at this stage of the game most of us expect our drill / drivers to have a worklight, it seems to be becoming more of an industry de facto standard and a general buying expectation. Some power tools claim to have fantastic work lights that really don't make the mark. In fact some of them are probably more comparable to a candle light so we weren't expecting great things; however the Bosch 0615990H28 LED worklight is rather impressive illuminating a relatively large working area and even putting a squint in my eye.
This kit includes a carrying L-box, 63 piece bit accessory and 2 x 18 Volt 2.0 Ah Li-Ion Batteries.